I was on the beach while this was going down. I noticed that there were several kiters in the water near the shark pit, seemingly powered up. Is there a reason no one helped this guy out. Was there a wind shadow where he was so you couldn't get to him? Was he not able to paddle out to where you could get him?

I had my 12m rigged, and I barely got it in the air. I was amazed people were actually out riding.

The guy was a kiter. He spent some time on the Tomales side of the channel. Not the best place to be and pretty hard to rescue. He said to his friends that he was ok and started to self-rescue. The wind kept getting lighter so not much you can do to get to him. He was caught in the ebb and looked like he wasn't making much progress. His friend called the coast guard/ sheriff and they picked him. He looked ok probably a bit cold from the swim.

If you want to play in the Pit, you better fully understand the consequences. The current is super gnarly, the wind will paste your kite to the cliffs and then there's our good friend and neighbor swimming close by.

From the beach it looked like the guys out there were riding waves and enjoying themselves-meanwhile this guy was need of a rescue. The wind was very light, question is had they attempted to help him out or were they just ignoring him.

I was in search of wind yesterday and bypassed Dillin for this reason. I'm not experienced in the waves and don't want to practice with the land lord watching.

I also heard from a kiting buddy a little later that some U.C. students are chumming out there right now doing some great white research.

I went past Bodega where the wind was howling but the tide was out and ended up kiting just north of Salmon Creek. I thought I was going to be throwing up a 6m but ended up borrowing my buddies 14m. Just shows goes to show you how fast conditions change.

yojimbo wrote:From the beach it looked like the guys out there were riding waves and enjoying themselves-meanwhile this guy was need of a rescue. The wind was very light, question is had they attempted to help him out or were they just ignoring him.

But he got a fun helicopter ride out of it

It is obvious that we can no more explain a passion to a person who has never experienced it than we can explain light to the blind. T.S.Eliot

A breakdown at the Pit is one of my worst nightmares. It's one I hope never comes true, yet you gotta prepare for the worst. When it's ebbing there is SO much water moving around - add to that any significant swell and it's gonna get dicey fast. It's a spot for the buddy system for sure.

Dillon (particularly the Pit) is one of the main reasons I've started carrying my iPhone with me in a waterproof case when I kite. I've imagined what would happen in a gnarly situation out there and considered what it would be like to hike out from the Pt. Reyes/headland side to the South.

And booties. It's the main reason I wear booties. Hiking barefoot for several hours... no thanks.